Stories of the Meek
by DeafSoprano13
Summary: Short stories featuring my OC Clementine. What happens when a little girl stumbles upon a certain little shop and starts working there?
1. The Girl and The Shop

The Girl and The Shop

It was a chilly, rainy afternoon on Skid Row. It was the type of dreary day that made one want to stay inside with a warm blanket and a good book. That's exactly what Clementine Elizabeth Grace wanted to do, but instead found herself trapped in a rainstorm. "All I wanted to do was window shop at the toy store…" The little girl looked at the grey sky, cursing it to herself...well as much as a 5-year-old could curse. Grumpily wanting to get out of the rain, Clementine turned and saw a small corner flower shop. "Mushnik's Skid Row Florist" was sprawled on the display window in strange red letters. There was an overhead awning that seemed just big enough to avoid the rain. Clementine sighed and ran for cover. She stood there, shivering, and rubbing her hands together. Her tattered grey dress was not warm enough for this early fall weather. The girl stared at the rain falling from the awning and tears formed in her eyes. She was suddenly feeling sorry for herself, standing there all wet and cold…

"Oy!" A gruff voice bellowed behind Clementine. "No loitering!"

Clementine jumped and turned to see a stalky, but short older gentleman with very little hair and a bushy mustache. His face was puffy and red, and he looked grumpy. Clementine, still shivering pathetically, tried to stand up straighter and looked the man in the eye.

"Sorry, sir" She muttered through her teeth. "Just trying to get out of the rain." The man looked the small child over, noticing she was dripping wet and had no coat. His expression softened, but only a little.

"Where are your parents, girl?" He demanded, crossing his arms.

"Um…" Clementine shuffled her feet, suddenly very sad and embarrassed. "I don't have parents…"

The man's eyes widened, but then narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I live at the Girl's Home." Clementine replied, gesturing towards the direction she came from. "The orphanage?"

There was an awkward pause, as the man looked the girl over again, his expression softening with each second.

"I know the place." The man said gently but darkly, then sighed. "Come in, come in. Hurry" He moved aside and ushered Clementine inside the flower shop. Once inside, Clementine took in her new surroundings. There was a dirty yellow and red rug with so many stains Clementine wondered if it had once been white and pink. There was a counter, and a door behind the counter and one right beside it. The white walls looked cracked, like old china, and had yellowed in some places. A lonely "fire bucket" full of dirty water stood in a corner. There were plants, but Clementine could see each plant was withering or dead. Overall, Clem knew it was a dump, but it was better than standing outside freezing to death. "Maybe this place once had charm" she thought optimistically and smiled to herself.

"You can sit here." The man said, plopping a chair down at a nearby card table. Clementine obeyed, grateful to be off her feet in a relatively warm place. The man sat at the counter and opened a newspaper, eying the girl every now and again.

Some time later, the door opened and a bell dinged. A young woman with short feathered blonde hair, big brown eyes and a sensible but low cut blue dress bounded in. She immediately shucked off her white faux fur and hung it up on a rack beside the front door.

"Sorry I'm late again, Mr. Mushnik!" She said, turning on her heel and flashing a small smile. She saw Clem, and her smile grew. "Oh! We have a guest!"

"Yeah, I found the pathetic thing standing around right outside the door and shivering! She's from the girl's home." Mr. Mushnik said, though not meanly. "Poor girl."

"Oh no." The woman looked sadly at Clementine. "Well, welcome! I'm Audrey. Audrey Fulquard". She extended a hand to Clem, who took it awkwardly. Audrey smiled warmly and shook her hand. She couldn't help but to smile back at Audrey. She could tell Audrey was a warm and cheery woman.

"I'm Clementine. Clementine Grace." The girl replied, beginning to relax.

"You are all soaking wet! Hows about I get you a towel, huh?" Audrey's eyes widened. Clem nodded vigorously and waited while Audrey disappeared into the back room. She returned with a soft towel. The girl took it gratefully and began to dry off. She wrapped it around her body to warm up.

"So, Audrey, you finally…" Mr. Mushnik said, putting his newspaper down.

Suddenly there was a loud CRASH from downstairs, and Mr. Mushnik's expression darkened and his face turned blood red.

"SEYMOUR what is going on down there!?" He bellowed, banging the counter with his free hand. It made Clementine and Audrey jump.

A young man burst through the door beside the counter. He had big blue eyes, super curly brown hair and a kindly but nervous look on his face. He had cardboard box in his hand, and Clementine could see it was full of broken pot. He sheepishly handed the box to Mr. Mushnik.

"Sorry Mr. Mushnik!" He cried meekly "It was accident" Mr. Mushnik's red face began to turn purple.

"Krelborn!" He screamed "That's the second shipment of pots you broke! I'm not made of money, you good for nothin KLUTZ"

"Don't yell at Seymour, Mr. Mushnik!" Audrey said over the yelling, diverting the attention of the men. Seymour turned to see the young girl and he raised an eyebrow. Audrey continued: "Clementine this is Seymour, he works here too!"

Seymour looked curiously at Clementine.

"Hey there." He began. "You're, uh, a bit young to be alone."

"Yeah I am." Clementine retorted, but kindly. "I, uh, live at the orphanage."

Seymour's eyes lit up with some sort of recognition and he nodded solemnly.

"Mr. Mushnik here took me out of the Boy's Home. I was about your age, so I understand."

Clementine looked at the ground, not sure how to take the gentleness of these people. Well, Audrey and Seymour anyway. 'And Mr. Mushnik was a little rough, but he can't be that bad, since he took in Seymour and offered shelter to me when I needed it' the girl thought. She was used to being shoved aside or ignored by most people, not being told 'I understand' or anyone noticing her when she needed something.

"I was just thinking…"Audrey began, a cautious sparkle in her eye "That Clementine here could help out around the shop?" She smiled at Mr. Mushnik, whose face was twisted with annoyance. Before she could control herself, Clementine gasped and her face lit up. "She could be useful, and help us tend to the plants and help Seymour clean!"

Clem looked at Mr. Mushnik hopefully. After a moment, the man rubbed his temples, then gave a long sigh.

"Ok. But I'm not keeping you around here! One idiot is enough." He gestured to Seymour, who's face fell. Clementine gave Mr. Mushnik a look that she hoped said 'A bit harsh, don't ya think?' but the man simply shook his head and returned to his newspaper.

"Uh, how about we start training our new friend, eh, Seymour?" Audrey smiled gently, noticing her friends long face, and the team leaped into action.

The rest of the day, Clementine learned the basics of tending to the shop. She enjoyed her time there, despite the shop being desolate and basically customer-less. She returned to the orphanage that evening, ate her pitiful dinner, and went to bed elated. Audrey had called her a _friend._ She had always wanted friends, and now she had friends and a job, even though she knew she wouldn't be paid. She couldn't wait to go back the next day.


	2. The 23rd Day of the Month of September

The 23rd Day of the Month of September:

Every other Sunday, the shop was closed and the employees had the day off. Clementine often visited Audrey on their day off, but she had been withdrawn and kept mentioning a "date". On this particular day she decided to visit Seymour at the shop. She knew he got lonely, all alone in that little basement.

She was right across the street when 3 familiar voices called out.

"Hey! Red!" It was Chiffon, Crystal and Ronette, 3 urchins that hung out near the shop. Clementine had befriended them after Mr. Mushnik told her to shoo them away from the shop. The girl had thought this rather rude, so she ended up talking to them for hours. She learned they were sisters, and that they were already friends with Audrey and Seymour. They had given her the nickname 'Red', because of her wild and curly red hair.

"Hey Crystal, hey Ronette hey Chiffon!" Clementine said, as was customary when greeting the trio. The girls jumped up from the stoop of Audrey's apartment and greeted the girl.

"Red, what are you doing here? You know you have the day off!" Crystal grinned, tussling Clementine's curls.

"Looking for Seymour?" Chiffon asked, as if she already knew the answer.

"Well, yes actually!" Clem replied, fixing her hair and adjusting her blue bow. "Have you seen him?"

The girls giggled. Clementine knew they thought Seymour was cute.

"Yeah, we've seen him" Ronette giggled slyly. There was a pause.

"Caaaan you tell me where he is?" Clem finally asked.

"Oh! Yeah, he's in the alley by the shop." Crystal gestured. Clementine thanked them and went over to the alley.

Sure enough, there was Seymour, hovering over a few empty pots and adjusting his glasses.

"Hey Seymour!" piped Clem, making Seymour jump.

"Clem!" He gasped, his hand on his heart. "Gee, you scared me!"

"Sorry!" She said quickly, then, eying the pots. "Whatcha doing?"

Seymour sighed and ran his fingers through his curly brown hair. "I'm trying to figure out what plants to work on next but I don't have anything interesting. I was thinking about going to the Flower District, if you wanted to come."

"YES! YES!" The girl practically squealed, jumping up and down. Seymour smiled.

"Alright then, let's go!"

A few moments later, they found themselves in the Flower District. Clementine knew it was Seymour's favorite place in the world, and it was becoming Clem's favorite too. She loved being surrounded by lively green plants and the smell of flowers. It was such a difference from the smell of booze and oil she was used to.

"Ok Clementine, listen up!" Seymour said in a mock serious voice. "We are on a mission to find a _strange_ plant. No zinnias or ferns. You got it?"

"Aye aye!" she giggled and saluted playfully. They made their way over to Chen's Flowers and began to peruse the merchandise. Clementine examined each plant, wondering which ones would pass as 'strange'. It felt like hours before Seymour finally shook his head and sighed.

"I'm not seeing anything, Clem." He said sadly "Let's go. Maybe I can cross pollinate some flowers I have?" He placed a gentle hand on Clem's shoulder and began leading her away from Chen's.

Clementine was about to say something when she heard a noise that made her blood go cold. It sounded like a warbled radio signal, and was unlike anything Clem had ever heard. She instinctively inched closer to Seymour and Seymour instinctively held her close. The air suddenly felt electric and it got dark. The girl looked up, and was shocked to see a total eclipse of the sun. They looked in wonder until it was over. Though she didn't know why, Clementine turned back to Chen's. She thought she saw a small plant, right in the front of a display of ferns. She stared a moment and confirmed it, then tugged on Seymour's jacket sleeve.

"Seymour, look!" She pointed. Seymour stared for a moment and then went over to the plant as if he was in a trance. Clem followed to get a better look at the…thing. She thought it looked a lot like cabbage, but on a stem. It seemed to have lips, too, which creeped Clementine out. She felt there was more to this plant than met the eye, like it was watching her and listening. She wanted to say something to Seymour, but he was examining it with a sparkle in his eye that Clem didn't often see, so she decided to let him have this. He paid Chen 1.95 and led Clementine away happily.


	3. The Girl, the Man and the Plant

The Girl, the Man and the Plant:

"Hey everyone!" Clementine called as she entered the shop and hung up her rain coat. She was greeted with a grunt from Mr. Mushnik, who was sitting where he usually did, on his stool near the counter, reading a newspaper.

She was going to the back room to help Audrey start flower arrangements when she spotted Seymour, standing slumped against the new refrigerator display. She went over to her friend and placed a hand gently on his arm. Her friend looked at her and stared without a smile. Clementine noticed he looked very pale and exhausted.

"Hey Seymour, are you ok?" Clementine asked sweetly. Seymour shook his head as if shaking off water.

"Huh? Oh, yeah! Just tired. Been busy lately!"

This was true. The plant Seymour had bought, which he called an Audrey II, had grown quite a bit since he got it and people were flocking to see it. People would come to see the Audrey II and stay to buy flowers. But, Clem noticed since the plant was growing that Seymour had been looking paler by the day. He was even more clumsy, forgetful and quiet than usual and it was beginning to worry her. Plus, all 10 of his fingers were constantly bandaged. She wondered if it had anything to do with the plant, which as a bit bigger than Clementine now and still creeped the girl out.

"Please take care of yourself!" She begged. "I worry about you."

"Oh, don't worry about me." Seymour said with a small smile. "Don't worry about anything."

Clem shook her head, and was about to say some encouraging words when Mr. Mushnik interrupted.

"KRELBORN!" He bellowed. "THE DAMN PLANT IS WITHERING AGAIN!"

Seymour looked at his plant and winced.

"I'll water it for you." Clementine said quickly, already grabbing the watering can near the counter. She hated the plant and almost never went near it, but she wanted to help her friend as much as she could. Seymour went into the back room, Audrey wasn't in yet and Mushnik went outside to usher the customers in, so Clem was all alone with the plant. She cautiously watered it without issue, but when she turned her back to it she thought she heard what sounded like a stomach rumbling. She whirled around to see the plant, perfectly still but menacing in its corner. She couldn't help but to still feel it was sentient.

Audrey came in near later that day, and Clementine expressed her concern.

"Seymour seems sick all the time since we got that plant, and the plant just really scares me! I think I heard its stomach rumble!" She concluded with a huff.

Audrey, who was busy with arrangements, threw one last pile of glitter onto the roses in front of her and shook her head.

"I'm worried about him too." She said, dusting her hands off. "He's been getting hurt so much lately! I think the new success of the shop is getting to him."

"What do we do?"

Audrey thought for a moment then smiled "We continue to be his friend and make sure he knows we are here for him. That's all we _can_ do."

Clementine was satisfied with this answer and spent the rest of the day helping Seymour in any way she could. She was still worried, but she knew she could at least be a good friend.


	4. Audrey's Date

**Audrey's Date:**

Closing time was probably Clementine's favorite part of the day. She got turn the sign on the front door from Open to Close and empty the pots. Then she got to either spend time with Seymour or go home with Audrey. Today was supposed to be an Audrey day, but Audrey had been reluctant all day.

"I'm sorry Clem, but I need you to stay with Seymour tonight." She had said simply.

"Why?" Clementine asked, pouting.

"I…have a date." She began busying herself again.

"That same no good-nik?" Mr. Mushnik scoffed suddenly, emerging from the front of the shop. "Audrey, he isn't a good guy."

Audrey sighed but forced a smile. "He makes good money. He's the only dentist on Skid Row, and he gets lots of patients!"

Clementine exchanged glances with Mr. Mushnik. Audrey always saw the good in everything and everyone, even when there wasn't any. It's what Clem both loved about her and got annoyed with her for.

A little bit later, Audrey said good night to Seymour and went across the street to her apartment to get ready for her date. Clementine noticed Seymour was watching her with a longing look. Clem knew he liked her, and it was obvious Audrey liked him too. She wondered why they didn't just date each other. It made sense to her. She decided to ask Seymour.

"Oh, well…" Seymour's face turned a bright red. "She wouldn't want to be with me. I can't provide for her, I'm a klutz, and I don't even have my own apartment or anything."

"But you're nice to her, and you like who she is. And she likes you too!"

"I'm not so sure about that. But, I'm glad we're friends at least." He said, though there was bitterness in his voice.

Seymour went downstairs to tend to his other plants, and Clementine, bored, grabbed the picture book Mr. Mushnik had gotten her and headed over to Audrey's apartment. They were making small talk when she suddenly heard a rumbling, and a rev of an engine that grew louder. She looked out the front window to see a man on a motorcycle, pulling up to Audrey's apartment. He jumped off and the motorcycle and it stopped immediately, as if it was possessed. Clem could see he was pretty tall and lean, with greasy black hair and small beady grey eyes. He wore a plain white shirt, black pants and a black leather jacket. He pulled what looked like a metal tube out of his pocket and brought it to his nose, inhaling it. He let out a maniacal laugh that sent chills down the girl's spine.

He clomped his way over to Audrey's door and banged on the door. Audrey practically leaped from her little chair and ran over to answer the door. Clem instinctively hid behind Audrey, putting on her bravest face.

"Hi Orin! I was just getting ready." Audrey said, her usually steady voice trembling. She began to reach for her earrings.

The man scowled. "Just shuddup and do it, ya slut." He barked.

Clem frowned, wondering what that word meant. Whatever it meant, she was sure it was not a compliment.

The man spotted her.

"Who's THIS?" He growled, moving toward the girl, his eyes shining with rage. Clementine did not move, not wanting this man to know how terrified she was.

Audrey came over and put a hand on Clem's shoulders.

"T-this is C-Clementine!" She stuttered. "C-Clem, this is Orin Scrivello, DDS!"

Orin looked the girl over, at first with a softened looked but then the rage returned to his eyes.

"You didn't tell me you had a kid…" He said, dangerously quiet.

Audrey's eyes widened and her mouth hung open. She was clearly scared, so Clementine spoke up.

"I'm not her kid…I'm a friend." She squeaked, sounding more pathetic than she meant to.

Orin raised a fist and started towards Audrey, who was practically cowering in fear.

"You LIED TO ME, HUH BITCH?!" He bellowed.

"No, no no! I didn't!" Audrey whimpered, her whole body shaking.

Clementine was beginning to see red, and felt a slew of emotions she wasn't used to. It was a mix of sadness, anger and bravery she didn't know she was capable of.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" She yelled as loudly as her little lungs allowed.

Orin froze, clearly surprised at the tiny girl brave enough to yell at him. Audrey was frozen too, her eyes darting between Orin and Clem. Orin stepped towards Clem, and his expression slowly changed into a smirk. Before the girl could do anything, she felt the back of his hand across her face. She fell to the floor, her face stinging. The man stared at her for a but then snapped his fingers.

"Audrey! Let's go" And with that he turned on his heel and left.

Audrey came right over to Clementine, wrapping her arms around her tiny friend. Clem burst into tears, and saw that Audrey had too.

"I'm so sorry, Clementine." Audrey said softly. "I didn't mean for that to happen."

"He isn't a good man, Audrey" Clem sniffled, trying to dry her tears. "I don't like him!"

Audrey held Clem until she heard the honk of the horn from Orin's motorcycle. She made sure Clem was safe and she was whisked away.

Clementine was livid, but she also felt a sadness for her friend as well. She dubbed Orin a monster and wished with all her might that Audrey could escape him. Maybe, she thought, there was a wishing star that would hear her.


	5. The Eye of the Storm

The Eye of The Storm

They had been busy ever since the Audrey II was put on display, but today was especially busy. There was a steady stream of customers. It thrilled Mr. Mushnik, but Clementine found it tiresome and boring. She was what Mr. Mushnik called a "gopher". She spent most of the time fetching things or arrangements. Occasionally she snuck into the back room to "help Audrey" to avoid Mr. Mushnik's yelling. He got mad and yelled a lot lately and Clem didn't like it. She much preferred the quiet of the back room. Audrey was usually quarantined there, and Seymour…well he was still weak, pale and often stared into space and got yelled at.

"SEYMOUR!" hollered Mr. Mushnik over the crowd. Clementine watched as Seymour tried to make his way over to the counter. He swayed and ended up falling. Clem quickly went over to help, and Mr. Mushnik was close behind, a rare look of concern on his face.

"Krelborn, Christ you ok?" He asked, helping him onto a stool.

Seymour nodded. "I must be hungry or something" he muttered.

"Let's close for lunch then, huh?" Mr. Mushnik replied gently. He motioned for Clementine to turn the open sign to close and he disappeared into the back room.

"Audrey and I brought soup." Clem patted Seymour's arm. "It'll be good for you if you're sick."

"Will there be enough for you two?" Seymour frowned.

Clem laughed and nodded vigorously. "We brought enough for EVERYONE!"

The last of the customers left and Audrey came bounding out of the back room, Mr. Mushnik behind her. She had the containers of soup and spoons in her arms.

"Seymour, Mr. Mushnik says you're sick!" She said as she grabbed a chair and sat. "This soup will help."

"I guess so." Seymour muttered. He gratefully took some soup and a spoon from Audrey.

Mr. Mushnik sat on his usual stool and they began to eat their lunch. At first, they ate in silence but eventually conversation and even laughter found them. Even Seymour seemed to perk up, the color returning to his cheeks.

Clementine smiled to herself. THESE were the moments that made her forget she was an orphan living on Skid Row. Sure, she was still an orphan, Seymour still lived in the basement of his workplace and Audrey still had a horrible boyfriend. And sure, Skid Row was still a dump. But for these quiet, joyful moments these things did not exist. For a moment, Clementine felt as if she was in the eye of a storm.


	6. Super Powers

Chapter 6: Super Powers

Seymour had been very busy with radio interviews, TV appearances and news broadcast. Sometimes, Clementine went along with him. She did not like the fact she was around the creepy plant, but she enjoyed the free food and hanging out with Seymour. The shop was booming, which was great except it left everyone exhausted. Audrey and Seymour seemed to be getting really close, much to Clem's delight. Audrey hadn't had a date with Orin in a while. She thought maybe her wish worked, but sometimes she felt guilty about wishing it even if Orin was a monster. All in all, things seemed to be improving.

One day, Clementine went to the shop early and right away knew something was off. Mr. Mushnik was not sitting on his usual stool reading the paper like he did every morning before opening. Clem called for him, but got no answer. Seymour appeared from his basement, looking pale and scared. He held a letter.

"Where's Mr. Mushnik?" Clementine asked carefully, fearing the worse.

"Um…he left a note..he's visiting his sister in Czechoslovakia. Family emergency." Seymour was sweating. Clementine didn't buy this but decided it must be one of those 'adult things' that would scare her if she knew the truth, so she dropped it. She figured she would find out later.

Audrey came in a bit later, and Seymour showed her the letter. Audrey was much more accepting and helped Seymour get some paper work together for the new day. Clem kept her mind busy by helping customers and gathering flowers for the window display. She noticed the plant had almost tripled in size and she nearly got sick at the sight of it. What was Seymour doing to it?

"Hhhungry…feed me" came a low hiss. Clementine's hair stood strait up when she realized it had came from the plant. She dropped the flowers she was holding and booked it to Seymour. Seymour, despite being surprised, hugged the shaking and sobbing girl.

"Clem, what's wrong?" He asked in a panic. He got down to Clem's level and held her shoulders. "Talk to me."

Clementine took a deep breath. "The plant talked!"

Seymour's face fell, his eyes emitted terror. Still, he remained composed. "W-what do you mean?"

"The plant, Audrey II, said 'feed me'! I swear!" Clem's green eyes were darting between Seymour and the Audrey II.

Seymour was quiet for a moment, then said carefully; "Clementine you know plants can't talk."

"I know, Seymour, but THIS one did!" She pointed, hoping the plant knew the jig was up. "Please believe me!"

Seymour finally relaxed and smiled, as if he just thought of something. "The plants talk to me too." He said gently, getting up.

Clem raised an eyebrow and tilted her head in confusion. "They do? All of them?"

"Oh, yes! Sometimes I hear them at night. They get thirsty or hungry and they always tell me when I need to care for them."

Clem looked suspiciously at the Audrey II. "Even Audrey II?"

"Even Twoey" Seymour nodded, using the plants nickname.

Clementine finally smiled. "Guess we have the same plant powers huh?"

"You bet, kiddo" Seymour laughed, tussling Clem's hair.

Clementine returned to her work, satisfied with the answer and even proud that she had the same affect on plants that Seymour did. She spent the rest of the day musing over what else the plants could say. She even pretended to talk to and for the various flowers, much to the amusement of Audrey. For now, the girl was more at ease than she had been in ages.

Over the next week, the shop was busier than ever. Clementine often wondered when Mr. Mushnik was coming back. Seymour did a fine job but he wasn't as organized as Mr. Mushnik. The shop was sometimes in chaos with missing or wrong orders or just too many people. Whenever Clem or Audrey asked, Seymour would get quiet and say 'he might be a while'. Clem just hoped he came back before customers tore the doors down.


	7. Best Laid Plans

Chapter 7: Best Laid Plans

Audrey and Clementine were getting ready to leave Skid Row. Audrey packed a small blue suitcase, two outfits and shoes. Clementine had even less than Audrey, but she packed what she had in her small bag. Audrey had gotten her mother's wedding dress from the closet and gave Clementine a purple dress she had as a girl to wear. Clem got dressed, and while Audrey braided her hair, she looked in the mirror. She could hardly believe what had happened, or what was about to happen.

Seymour had proposed to Audrey. In fact, the plan was to get married that very night and stay in a hotel. Then they were going to leave Skid Row. Clementine was happy for her friends but at first was sad because they were leaving.

"Can I come to the wedding?" She had asked, holding back bittersweet tears.

"Well, sure, but we were hoping you would come with us!" Seymour said, his eyes sparkling.

Clementine's heart skipped a beat. She wasn't sure she had heard right.

"Come…with you?" She repeated, in a trance.

"If you want to, sweet pea." Audrey said. "We would love to adopt you!"

"Really?" Clem squeaked.

"Of course." Seymour said, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder. "We wouldn't leave you behind. Besides, we couldn't imagine life without you."

The small girl burst into tears and threw her arms around both adults. She didn't know what to say, so she ended up saying "thank you…thank you" in between sobs. They hugged one more time and then Audrey had whisked her away to get ready for the wedding/adoption ceremony. The girl hadn't processed the situation yet.

"There, how is that?" Audrey asked, snapping Clem back from her thoughts. Clementine admired her braided hair in the mirror and grinned.

"Love it!"

Suddenly, the blue phone on Audrey's side table rang, making the girls jump.

"That must be Seymour!" Audrey giggled, and answered with a "Hello?"

When she saw Audrey's confused face, Clem moved closer so she could hear the person on the other line. She prayed it wasn't Orin. She hadn't heard anything about him or from him in a while.

"Hey little lady, you looking cute!" She heard a rough deep voice say. She knew it wasn't Orin.

"Seymour!" Audrey grinned, thinking he was playing a joke.

"No, it ain't Seymour!" The voice laughed. "It's ME!"

"Oh my god…" Audrey's voice trailed off as she looked out her window and her eyes grew wide. She dropped the phone.

Clementine whirled around to see none other than the Audrey II. It was moving, and it seemed to be laughing. It waved at them with its branches ominously. Clem suddenly knew that this night was not going to go as planned.


End file.
